This comes in the wake of a cyber-attack that hit USIS last month. When that attack happened, the federal government temporarily stopped using the local company for background investigations, and many employees were furloughed.

Upon learning of the OPM decision to terminate their contracts, USIS issued this statement:

“We are deeply disappointed with OPM’s decision, particularly given the excellent work our 3,000 employees have delivered on these contracts. While we disagree with the decision and are reviewing it, we intend to fulfill our obligations to ensure an orderly transition. The Company continues to provide high quality service to its many other valued government customers.”

USIS has also faced criticism in the past year-and-a-half after it was made public that it handled the background check for National Security Agency (NSA) whistle-blower Edward Snowden and US Navy yard gunman Aaron aAexis, who killed 12 people in Washington DC.